Julian Assange loses extradition battle over sexual assault complaint

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has lost a court battle to prevent his …

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has lost a court battle to prevent his extradition from the United Kingdom to Sweden to face questioning over sexual assault complaints, news outlets are reporting today.

Assange is accused of sexually assaulting two women in Sweden in August 2010, and though he has not been charged with a crime, prosecutors want to question him regarding the allegations. Assange attempted to stay in the UK, but appeals court judges rejected his arguments that it would be “unfair to send him to a country where the language and legal system are alien to him.” However, another hearing will be held this month to determine whether Assange, who is under house arrest, may appeal again. Assange’s extradition was previously ordered by a British court in February, but he quickly appealed that ruling.

"I have not been charged with any crime in any country," Assange said on the steps of the High Court in London, according to CNN. "Despite this, the European arrest warrant is so restrictive that it prevents UK courts from considering the facts of a case, as judges have made clear here today." A website set up on Assange’s behalf is seeking donations for his cause, and has posted a copy of the court judgment against him. The Guardian reports that in order to appeal again, “Assange must persuade the judges there is a wider issue of ‘public importance’ at stake in the latest decision.” If successful, the extradition case could go in front of the United Kingdom’s supreme court.